Filing-case



(No Model.)

B. H MORGAN.

FILING CASE. No. 388,498. y Patented Aug. 28, 1888.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

BENJAMIN H. MORGAN, OF LEAVENWORTILKANSAS.

FILING-CASE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 388,498, dated August 28, 1888.

Application filed March 22, i888. Serial No. 268,095.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I BENJAMIN H. MORGAN, a citizen or" the United States, residing at Leavenworth, in the county of Leavenworth and State of Kansas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Office Filing-Cases; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the saine, which will enable others to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification.

My invention relates to filing cases or envelopes for office use in which the ends and sides are folded upon the rectangular portion or inner face of the case or envelope; and it consists, iirst, in the novel means for rigidly expanding the ends and side portions of said cases, which otherwise collapse at an angle to its face, whereby the contents are protected, and as the bulk increases the width and rigidity of said sides and ends may be increased in proportion; secondly, to enable the sides and end portions to be readily folded at proper distances from the inner face of the case without breakage.

In the drawings, Figure l is a View in perspective of the filing-case with the files open, showing the rigid strips and also the creases at determinate distances apart. Fig. 2 is a detail View in perspective of a portion of filing'case, showing the end folds held rigidly by the strips and overlapping the file contents, and a portion of the end fold removed from said strip, and also one side fold lin a horizontal position. Fig. 3 is a transverse View of the folds, showing the crease therein.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Referring to the drawings, A represents a rectangularliling case or envelope, which is constructed, preferably, from Manila paper, with a face portion, a2, upon which the contents are inscribed and which may be made sufficiently rigid to keep said portion from doubling upon itself. The side folds, a a, and end folds, a a', are extensions from the respective opposite sides and ends of the portion a, and are made flexible, and between said portion a* and the said folds on the longitudinal sides a groove, a3, is made, which constitutes the dividing-line or hinge and extends the length of said sides.

(No model.)

Across the upper and lower ends of the portion a2 of the envelope are made similar transverse grooves, as a3, which enable the end folds, a a', to overlap upon the ends of the face a2 when provided with the re-enforce strips, as herein after described.

In carrying out my invention a flat longi tudinal re enforce strip, B, is made from any suitable rigid material, narrow in width, and of a suitable length to extend across the ends a of the'le-case, and a similar strip, B', is made to extend the corresponding length of the folds a a. The strips B are then attached in any suitable manner to the inner side of the folds a a and to corresponding opposite folds, the lower longitudinal edge ofthe strips B B being placed in a parallel relation with and in the grooves aaa, which are made along the side and in a transverse relation across the end of the face a2 of the case or envelope and form the dividing-line between said face a2 and the said folds. The thickness of the strips B B is suflicient to give rigidity to the sides of the filingcase which they form when the folds are carried to a position at right angles to the face a2. To provide for an increased bulk of papers which may be placed in the case or envelope A, series of re-enforce strips B B are placed upon and attached to the folds a a above the one contiguous with the face a2, parallel therewith, and at a slight distance apart equal to the width of the grooves a a4, as seen in Fig. 2, corresponding to the thickness of the strips B, so that when the strip B contiguous with the face a2 is raised in a vertical relation or at right angles thereto the stri p B on the saine fold and parallel therewith may be folded upon the contents of the case in a horizontal relation and overlap the upper longitudinal edge of the lower strip B. The strips B may, however, be made of various widths suitable to the purpose. I prefer thick card-board, which may be pasted upon the case or envelope. When metal is used, it may be riveted to the case.

In the folds a a', longitudinal with the folds a, and across the end fold, a', at proper distances apart, and in a parallel relation with each, are made the grooves a4 at, as seen in Fig. 3. The groove a* is made along the folds upon the surface which is folded upon the papers IOO within the case or upon an opposite fold, so that as the contents of the case enlarge the portions ofthe folds a a which extend above and remain to be folded may be turned down upon the papers or the opposite fold, as the case may be,Without breaking. rlhe grooves a are made in the folds a above and near the folding-point of the said folds a a upon the strips B, so that .When the papers are placed in the case or envelope A the strips B B are turned upwardly from the face portion in unison with the sides and ends by the folds a a and form a convenient side upon which the contents of the case may be identified by marks or descriptive words.

Having fully described niy invention, what I noW claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A ling-case having a rigid face portion and side and end folds adapted to overlap upon the said face portion and each other, havingv longitudinal side and transverse end grooves casitas at the folding-joints,and a re-enforce rigid strip upon the inner sides of said folds parallel in relation to and above said grooves and adapted to overlap in said grooves in unison with said side and end folds upon said face portions, as specified.

2. A filing-case having a rigid face portion BENJAMIN H. MORGAN.

Ti t nesses:

FRANK E. CONINE. S. L. C. Hnssorr. 

